Good housekeeping habits make upgrading a breeze

Pat Carrick has been using Macola software for more than 30 years. She has a rich and interesting history with the software and lots of knowledge to share. We’re lucky to have Pat on the Exceptional Software Solutions, LLC team, and our customers don’t make ERP moves without her.

In part two of our conversation with Pat, she walks Macola Progression users through how to plan, prepare for and make the upgrade to Macola 10.

Progression users—you will be happier when you upgrade.

Pat knows you’ll be happier once you upgrade to Macola so she’s in the business of coaxing the effort along. It’s just what experts do—because they know the industry, solutions and competing products and have the battle scars of experience.

Clients are more likely to see the light about upgrading when they’re in the midst of a difficult task that Macola Progression may not handle easily. Pat uses the practical example of doing a final year-end close where posting from the subsidiary ledger to the general ledger is needed. It’s not as easy in Progression but seamless in Macola 10.

Pat also makes sure that customers understand the differences between the two products. For example, in Macola 10, you own all the modules. You don’t have to buy them. They’re there to turn on when you need them.

It’s four letters and we all need more of it—time

We asked Pat the question: If finances are not the issue, why do people still hesitate to upgrade?

She says that it always comes back to the most precious resource—time. The team at Exceptional Software Solutions, LLC does a really good job of porting the data over to Macola 10, but it still takes time. Customers want to make sure all their history goes to Macola 10. ESS does the full upgrade—not just the quick fix of the master file conversion residing in Macola 10 with everything else in Progression. “We do it right,” Pat says.

Data management takes time.

How can companies streamline the conversion process? Pat says you should spend more time on your data. “Companies operate in the mode of if it’s not broken, don’t fix it.”

Listen to Pat. She knows of what she speaks. In each of her last six years of a Big 6 audit, she didn’t have a single adjustment to her books. Not one. Every single account balanced to the subsidiary schedules. She dotted every i and crossed every t. Doing the tough stuff up front led to an easier road for the audit.

Five ways to get your data in order—BEFORE you upgrade:

Housekeeping is crucial. Take the time to purge and clean up data. This task has to be done before you upgrade to Macola 10 anyway, so start now. It will be much less daunting and a step in the right direction.

Make sure your subsidiary reports balance to your general ledger. For example, your AR aging must balance; if not, your data won’t convert to Macola 10. This is a basic accounting function that needs to be in order but many departments ignore it.

Clean up old stuff to allow you to run utilities. Run mass item number changes, vendor changes and customer changes without losing your sales history.

There are tangible ways to accomplish these tasks. Outsource to a firm like Accountemps or have college senior interns do some of the raw data work, like closing out POs, then more knowledgeable staff can run the purge on open POs.

Archive old files. How much do you really have to have at your fingertips? It is likely more like 18 months worth of data, not 10 years’ worth. So keep only what you need and back up the rest. Make a list, develop a plan and split it up among your accounting team. Have one person handle AP, one AR and one inventory. Since the files are quite large, purge one at a time and run them overnight.

Pat says do it now.

All of these maintenance tasks not only prepare you for Macola 10, they also make it much easier to run Progression while you prepare to upgrade.

Technology has advanced. Just look at how the Macola product line has advanced since Pat first implemented the software. We’re in the age of digital factories and automated processes. For some, it takes a gut punch of reality to come up to speed. For others, they inherently know they’ve got to upgrade to Macola 10 to stay competitive and thrive.

Pat agrees. She wants you to start your 2019 transition plan and do your data chores so your firm will be ready.

Exceptional Software Solutions LLC has built a foundation that is focused around quality of service, quality of knowledge, integrity, experience and a can-do attitude. These characteristics and more are what sets us apart from other solutions providers. Dedication to the customer, to our company and to each other ensures success, and this has been proven over the years we have been together and in the industry.